19-Man Squad vs Tigers

[fozzieskem]

Millington and Watts just went on and on and on foolish from Wigan in not at least trying to Get Watts

[Mickw]

I agree Dave o ,look at Sammut for instance, he's 32 been playing championship rugby we sign him and he's the best we've had since the McGuire was era so some on here say well done I L and CR what a great signing, instead of why is he the best we've had in that time .
Don't anyone come on here and say Matty Smith was a good organizer ffs.

[Caboosegg]

I agree Dave o ,look at Sammut for instance, he's 32 been playing championship rugby we sign him and he's the best we've had since the McGuire was era so some on here say well done I L and CR what a great signing, instead of why is he the best we've had in that time .
Don't anyone come on here and say Matty Smith was a good organizer ffs.

But he was and Blake Green was a wane signing btw

[w.thomas]

And I thought I was a drama queen! Some replies tonight about the side are a joke. Granted we should of never lost that game but having afew players out then 3 injuries is no surprise we lost really. We was always going to struggle against a big Cas pack, we need some bigger players, big packs win games. Also for all the brilliance of the left side attack their defence is a joke, gilly and budgie couldn't tackle a hot dinner. Needs to be addressed and sortes out or else we will lose plenty more games coinciding sof
t trys

[acwrlfc]

How did Cas have out?

So much for our production Line

[acwrlfc]

Should be OK though Powell is back next week along with Lockers and Flower!!!


Why name them in the 19 if they aren't fit this week?

I donnt think thats fair on the speccies but who are we?

[shaunedwardsfanclub]

How did Cas have out?

So much for our production Line

The problem is not our production line it is the players we sign!

[shaunedwardsfanclub]

Sammut medial ligaments I’ve heard. Dom’s knee has gone apparently don’t know how true this is.
We ended up with one sub with all the injuries! Hard lines lads

Fredi the same.

[EagleEyePie]

The first half probably made people think we were stronger than we actually were. In the end both teams were fairly even and it came down to goalkicks, and you can't fault Hardaker really because he's been kicking very well and even the best kickers have an off day.

We were running hot in the first half and luckily our weakened pack didn't really have to mix it with theirs. Our left edge caused them plenty of problems and we scored some thrilling tries. However, our weak pack was always going to come into play. Cas may have had their own injuries but generally you can get away with injuries in the backs (we've proven that countless times) but it's much harder to cope when forwards are missing.

As soon as Cas managed to get on a roll and get quick play the ball we were in trouble. When you throw in Sammut's injury forcing Leuluai to play 80 down the middle, then Greenwood going off early in the second half it seemed the tide would inevitably turn. Take him out of the pack and the threat out wide is gone along with size and experience. You can't really expect a pack with Byrne, Partington, Smithies to dominate their opponents 2 weeks in a row, and the Cas pack provided a much sterner test in that second half.

It's frustrating to throw away such a good lead and concede some really soft tries from close range, but the damage was done and the defence weakened by conceding 70-80 metres on some sets. It was men against boys plus a few forwards who haven't been in the best form.

Hamlin's suspension has turned out to be a big blow because just one player like him having a decent game could have made a slight difference.

One of the big turning points was the interchange period of the first half. It's where Flower made such a huge difference against Catalans and aided our younger players. Tonight, without him, our defence was much weaker during that period. Byrne in particular found it difficult and it allowed them to force their way back into the game before half time.

The injuries are a concern as they could really derail our season. Another concussion for Greenwood could be really bad news. He's also missed a couple of weeks with one and it wouldn't surprise me if he's forced to sit out several more weeks after that heavy knock. That alone puts us in deep trouble given how much we've struggled in his absence. Paisley is okay but like any young player is inconsistent and nowhere near the same threat. Sammut was starting to show some really good touches in the halves and looked to compliment Williams well. His injury means we're either getting Leuluai in the halves and Powell at hooker again, or Shorrocks in the halves, neither of which fills me with confidence. Manfredi's injury is the easiest to cover as Davies will come straight in but probably the most frustrating because of all that Dom has been through. I really hope it's not as bad as it seemed at the time.

Some positives from that though were another good performance from Smithies. He didn't look like an 18 year old in only his second game. Also, Ollie Partington did well defensively while playing the full 80.

All in all, a disappointing end but probably not a surprise with the players missing and the disruption to the side during the game. Frustrating how it happened. The bigger worry is how we can bounce back with injuries mounting.

[shaunedwardsfanclub]

Need Forwards end of story with experience

Correct. I have been saying for a long time that Greg and Giz would struggle behind this pack, but Williams and Sammut have taken the flak. Too many of our forwards are not good enough, we need a clear out. We have some good young forwards but we are expecting too much of them. At least Powell cannot be blamed